Detroit's most serious steakhouse wine program
Downtown Detroit · Detroit · Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Updated April 2026
Reviewed March 22, 2026
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Prime + Proper lands like a statement — thick, serious, and unapologetically ambitious for a city that doesn't always get credit for fine dining. You're inside a gorgeous restored early-20th-century building with marble underfoot and ceilings that seem to go up forever, and the list matches the room. This is not a wine program that's phoning it in.
Four hundred to six hundred bottles is a real list, and Prime + Proper earns every page of it. The anchors are exactly where you'd expect for a white-tablecloth American steakhouse — Napa Cabernet and Bordeaux heavyweights — but there's genuine depth in Burgundy and Barolo that separates this from the pack. You've got Peter Michael Les Pavots sitting alongside Chateau Montelena and Caymus Special Selection, which tells you this program is speaking to both the trophy-wine crowd and the serious drinkers who want something with a little more soul. The Barolo presence is the most exciting part of the list — it's a region that actually makes steakhouses more interesting and not enough of them lean into it.
Twenty to thirty by-the-glass options is generous for a steakhouse, and the sommelier on staff means the pours are being actively managed rather than just defaulting to whatever's easiest to open. Expect the glass program to skew heavily toward Napa Cabs and crowd-pleasing reds — this is not the place hunting for natural wine by the glass — but the depth of the bottle list suggests there's more to explore if you ask the right person.
Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon — null
Among the heavy hitters on this list, Silver Oak Alexander Valley is the one that reliably delivers without the premium of its cult Napa neighbors. It's approachable, consistent, and doesn't require a second mortgage the way Opus One does. At a steakhouse with steep markups, this is where you get the most bang for your prestige dollar.
Peter Michael Les Pavots
Most tables here are grabbing Caymus or Opus One on autopilot. Peter Michael Les Pavots is a Bordeaux-style blend from Knights Valley that drinks with more elegance and complexity than the marquee names around it — and most guests walk right past it. It's the sleeper on this list and the pick for anyone who actually wants to be impressed rather than just recognized.
Opus One
Opus One is a legitimately great wine. It's also one of the most marked-up bottles in America, and steakhouses love it because customers recognize the label. You're paying heavily for that name recognition here. The wine is fine — the value proposition is not. Put that money toward Peter Michael or a Barolo and drink better.
Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon + Cowboy Ribeye
Montelena's Cab has the structure and tannin to stand up to a bone-in ribeye without steamrolling the beef the way some bigger, jammier Napa Cabs can. It's the kind of wine that makes a great steak taste even more like itself — no tricks, just balance.
🔥 The Bottom Line
Prime + Proper is the real thing — a deep, well-curated wine program with actual expertise behind it, in a room that makes you want to linger over another bottle. The markups are steep and there's no half-price night coming to save you, so go in with your eyes open and a budget to match the ambition.
Renaissance Center · Detroit · Regional Steakhouse
Highlands is a reliable special-occasion wine stop backed by a knowledgeable sommelier in Kevin Williams and a Wine Spectator Award it's held since 2022. The list won't surprise you, but at 71 floors up with a bone-in ribeye in front of you, you probably weren't asking it to.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Corktown · Detroit · Italian, Swiss
Alpino is doing something genuinely unusual for Detroit — an alpine-themed kitchen with a wine list that actually matches the room's ambition, not just its vibe. Send your friends here, tell them to order Austrian, and sit near the fireplace.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Southfield · Detroit · Northern Italian
Bacco is the kind of wine program that makes you feel like Detroit's been holding out on you — 11,000 bottles, a sommelier who actually knows the cellar, and a room serious enough to let a 2000 Gaja breathe properly. The prices will make your eyes water, but this is a destination list worth the trip.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Rochester Hills · Detroit · Italian
La Collina is a perfectly decent neighborhood Italian spot that treats its wine list like an afterthought — familiar names, steep markups, no real sense of curation or care. Drink the Brunello or order a Negroni and don't look back.
Crowd Pleasers
Gouge
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown Detroit · Detroit · Contemporary American
The Apparatus Room is the wine list Detroit didn't know it needed — thoughtful, fairly priced, and backed by a sommelier who actually shows up. If you're eating downtown and you care about what's in your glass, this is your spot.
Solid Range
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Unknown · Detroit · Steakhouse
Shanahan's is playing a different game than most Detroit restaurants — the wine list is destination-worthy on its own merits, even if the markups reflect the ambition. If you're serious about wine with your steak, this is where you go.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Downtown · Abilene · Steakhouse
Cattleman's Exchange isn't a wine destination, but it's not a disaster either — it's a hotel steakhouse doing hotel steakhouse things. If you're in Abilene and need a Cab with your beef, you'll find something that works; just don't expect the list to surprise you.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Unknown · Springfield · Steakhouse
LongHorn Springfield isn't a wine destination — but with markups this low and pours this affordable, it's one of the better casual chain options in Illinois for a simple red with a big steak. Send a friend here for dinner; just don't tell them to geek out over the list.
Crowd Pleasers
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
La Frontera · Round Rock · Steakhouse
Saltgrass Round Rock is exactly what it looks like: a chain steakhouse wine list on autopilot, built around brand names, sweet crowd-pleasers, and markups that assume you're not paying attention. Order a beer or a cocktail and save the wine for somewhere that actually cares.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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